Apparatus and method for separating air
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional methods for injecting cryogenic liquid into a gas pipe for air separation face challenges such as low evaporation rates, risk of blockage, and inefficient mixing due to low flow rates and large drop sizes, which are slow to evaporate and can cause blockages in the pipeline.
Innovation Solution
A configuration involving a gas pipe with a diameter reduction at the injection point, where the cryogenic liquid supply pipeline penetrates to the narrowed section, promoting mixing and evaporation while maintaining a large enough diameter to prevent blockages, using a flat jet nozzle for atomization and relying on hydrostatic pressure for liquid pressurization.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a large pipe diameter is used for liquid supply, then the risk of blockage is reduced, but the liquid flow rate and evaporation speed decrease
Solution Approach 1:
The liquid jet is segmented into droplets through the interaction with the gas flow in the reduced diameter section, transforming continuous liquid flow into discrete droplets that evaporate more efficiently while maintaining reliable flow through the larger supply pipe
Solution Approach 2:
The pipe diameter is locally reduced only at the injection section where liquid-gas interaction occurs, while the supply pipeline maintains its larger diameter throughout to prevent blockage. This localized modification optimizes evaporation without compromising overall system reliability
2Device complexity
If wall injection is used to simplify the structure, then the device complexity is reduced, but the mixing efficiency and evaporation rate are insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The gas flow acts as an intermediary that breaks up the liquid jet into droplets and enhances mixing. The reduced diameter section creates conditions where the gas flow effectively atomizes the liquid, achieving better mixing efficiency than wall injection while maintaining structural simplicity
3Productivity
If a static mixer is added to improve mixing, then the mixing efficiency is enhanced, but the device complexity increases and droplet size becomes unpredictable
Solution Approach 1:
The mixing function is extracted from a separate static mixer device and integrated into the pipe geometry itself. The reduced diameter section creates natural mixing conditions through fluid dynamics, eliminating the need for additional mixing equipment while maintaining predictable droplet characteristics
4Productivity
If high pressure loss nozzle is used to spray fine droplets, then the evaporation rate is improved, but the device complexity and risk of blockage increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses its own operating conditions (gas flow, pressure differential) to achieve droplet formation and evaporation. The reduced diameter section creates sufficient pressure loss and turbulence to atomize the liquid without requiring complex nozzle structures, and the larger supply pipe prevents blockage while maintaining flow rate
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This configuration enhances the evaporation of cryogenic liquid, reduces the risk of blockages, and improves mixing efficiency by breaking up the liquid into smaller droplets that evaporate quickly, ensuring effective transfer and preventing pipeline blockages.
Implementation Method 1
the gas pipe comprising a portion having a reduction in diameter by a ratio of 20 to 50% at the point of injection of liquid over a distance y wherein: y=n×d
Implementation Method 2
the liquid supply pipeline penetrates the gas pipe such that its end is in the portion of the pipe having the reduction in diameter... in order to break up a jet of cryogenic liquid in the gas flow
Implementation Method 3
promote evaporation of the cryogenic liquid... ensures effective transfer and preventing pipeline blockages
Implementation Method 4
the exchange coefficients are low at the cryogenic temperatures in question... the drops generated in this configuration are... slow to evaporate
Implementation Method 5
The surplus pressure which makes it possible to inject the liquid primarily comes from the hydrostatic height due to the weight of the purge liquid
Data Source
AI summary
Apparatus for separating air comprising a device for breaking up a jet of cryogenic liquid in a gas flow, comprising a supply pipeline for the cryogenic liquid having an inside diameter greater than or equal to 10 mm, and a gas pipe of circular section, with a diameter d, the gas pipe comprising a portion having a reduction in diameter by a ratio of 20 to 50% at the point of injection of liquid and over a distance y wherein:y=n×d and wherein the supply pipeline penetrates the gas pipe such that its end is in the portion of the pipe having the reduction in diameter and n is between 7 and 9.